Replica bags are essentially imitations made with materials and craftsmanship close to the originals. Legally, they are considered “fakes”, but unlike low-quality goods sold on street stalls, high-end replicas will even restore the hardware engravings and leather textures of the originals.
For example, my friend ordered a Celine Triomphe from lxybags·com last month. Even the font spacing of the anti-counterfeiting code on the lining is the same as that of the counter – of course, she bought it purely because she couldn’t bear to carry the real thing when she was commuting on the subway.
People’s psychology of buying replicas is actually very interesting. My colleague Linda is an investment bank VP with an annual salary of one million, but she always carries a replica Goyard tote bag on business trips.
“I don’t feel bad if it’s smashed on the luggage carousel at the airport,” she shrugged, “but customers will think I’m ‘knowledgeable’ when they see this pattern.”
You see, sometimes the adult world only wants symbolic value, not the obsession of paying for brand premiums.
Just like when I bought pirated books in college, I knew it was an infringement, but the poor student’s intellectual anxiety overcame the moral entanglement – the replica package was just a more expensive “pirated book”.